Dalton Police Blog

Police Seeking Suspect in Credit Card Fraud

Police are looking for a suspect wanted in connection with using a stolen credit card at several businesses in the Dalton area.  The suspect is described as a heavy set white male, middle age with gray hair, a goatee facial hair.  The suspect is believed to be driving a Silver Dodge Dakota.

The victim lost her card at the Wal-Mart gas station in Ft. Oglethorpe on January 17th, 2007.  She was notified by her bank that the credit card had been used at several businesses.  An investigation has produced video surveillance footage of the suspect.

Anyone with information about the identity of this suspect is asked to contact Detective Greg Bates at (706) 278-9085 extension 137.  Persons may also contact the police department's Crime Tip Line if they wish to leave information about this crime or any other crime in an anonymous or confidential manner.

Surveillance footage of suspect exiting local Dalton business

Becoming a Police Officer: Final Steps

The final steps in the selection process include an interview with the Chief of Police, a Medical Physical Examination, and approval of Public Safety Commission.

Interview with the Chief - Once all other testing including the background is complete, it is all forwarded to the Chief for review.  The Chief will then decide if an interview is warranted.  If so, the applicant will be scheduled for an interview with the Chief.  During this interview, the Chief will review the entire application with the applicant and ask any questions he may have.  He will also allow the applicant to ask questions about the department.  If a decision is made to hire the applicant, they are sent to a physician's office for a physical examination.

Physical Examination - The applicant's physical exam is done by a licensed physician who certifies that the candidate is free from any physical, emotional, or mental conditions which might adversely affect his/her exercising the powers or duties of a peace officer.  A drug screening is also completed on the applicant.

Approval by the Public Safety Commission -  The applicant is required to attend a meeting of the Public Safety Commission.  At this meeting, the Chief or his designee introduces the applicant to the commission and gives them a brief background on the individual.  The commission then vote to approve or disapprove the person for employment.

This concludes the selection process.  The entire process is extensive and can take several weeks to complete.  Following this the police cadet is given a start date to begin orientation one week prior to the attendance to the 11-week academy here in Dalton.

Georgia's Booster Seat Law

The Dalton Police Department and the American Red Cross routinely receive calls from the public on the laws regarding car seats and when booster seats are required .  The following is an overview of Georgia's Booster Seat Law.

As of July 1st, 2004, Children under age six are  required to be in a child safety seat or booster seat appropriate to the child's height and weight and used in accordance to the manufacturer's instructions.  Also, the law required children under six year of age to ride in the rear seat.

Exceptions to the law:

• No requirement to ride in back seat if all rear seat positions are already taken by other children or there is no rear seat available.  While you may be in compliance to the law, this does not remove the potential for injury from airbag deployment to children in the front seat.
• Vehicle exemptions include multifunctional-school-activities-buses for 5 year old children and licensed childcare facility vans that have met certain state safety inspection requirements and are used for the transportation of children over four (exempted until July 2007), taxicabs and public transit.
• Children over 4'9" tall may be restrained in a safety belt without a booster seat.
• A child under six is exempt if the parent or guardian has a physician's written statement that a physical or medical condition prevents using a child safety seat or safety restraint system.

Things To Remember:

• Fines up to $50 for first offense and $100 for second offenses can be charged.  The fine is for each unrestrained child in the vehicle.
• Georgia has a "primary safety belt law" meaning that law enforcement officers can issue citations just by observing any safety belt offense.
• Every occupant under 18 must be restrained regardless of where they sit in a passenger vehicle, including pickup trucks.
• While the law may not require your child to be in a booster seat past their 6th year, it is the best practice to use a booster until your child can bend their knees comfortably at the edge of the seat and the shoulder belt fits across the center of the chest with the lap belt low and touching the upper thighs.  And, the child must be capable of staying seated this way for the entire trip.
• Child Safety seats reduce the risk of fatal injury for infants by 71% and by 54% for toddlers involved in motor vehicle crashes
• Properly retraining your child in a moving vehicle is the single best way to protect them from injury and death.  Injuries and deaths from motor vehicle crashes represent 39% of all deaths among children below the age of 15.

More information can be found at the SafeKids website

Dalton Police Drug Unit Seize 20 Pounds of Marijuana

On February 7th, 2007, the Dalton Police Department's Drug Enforcement Unit with assistance from the Whitfield County Sheriff's Office Narcotics Unit as well as the FBI seized approximately 20 pounds of marijuana along with approximately two ounces of cocaine with a street value of $32,000.  Also recovered was $3000 in cash and several firearms.

The Police Department's Drug Enforcement Unit has been conducting this investigation for approximately six months.  No other information will be released at this time pending the possibility of future arrests.

The Dalton Police Department is asking anyone with drug or crime information to contact our Crime Tip Line at (706) 278-9085 extension 221. 

Approximately 20 pounds of marijuana and several handguns seized during a search warrant and arrest of suspect(s).

Responsible Alcohol Sales and Service Workshop in Dalton

WE REGRET TO ANNOUNCE THAT THIS WORKSHOP HAS BEEN POSTPONED TO A LATER DATE. THE STATE AGENCY RESPONSIBLE FOR ITS ADMINISTRATION ELECTED TO POSTPONE THE EVENT AFTER RECEIVING ONLY ONE RSVP TO ATTEND.

A workshop for area alcohol owners, licensees, and managers is being conducted on February 12th, 2007 at Dalton City Hall, 300 W. Waugh Street in Dalton from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon.  Pre-registration is required through the workshop organizers. 

The workshop will include information on:

• Recognizing your legal obligations and responsibilities including ways to reduce your risks and liability
• Drafting or revising your written policy and common pitfalls
• Staff training tools
• Ways to monitor your employees and increase compliance

Cost for the workshop is set at $100 with limited space available.

Gang Forum: First in a Series to be Presented by Police Department

The Dalton Police Department hosted it's first of four planned forums this past Tuesday, February 6th.  The first forum on gangs was conducted at Dalton City Hall with approximately 50 individuals attending.  Following a brief presentation by members of the Safe Streets Task Force, residents were encouraged to ask questions they had about gangs or gang related crimes.

Dalton Police Detective Alan Woods speaks to parents and citizens. (Photo by Rita Florez)

"The goal of the forum was to educate the public on gangs and provide insight to parents on how they can recognize if their child was becoming involved in a gang", said Officer Chris McDonald, the department's crime prevention officer and coordinator for the forum.  "Many of these gang members are in the age group where they are still living at home and we are asking parents to help us by talking to their children about this issue".

The next forum that will take place will cover Drugs.  The date is expected to be set in the next few days and will follow the same protocol as the gang forum with a informative lecture followed by a question and answer session.  The focus will continue to emphasis educating the public on recognizing drug use particularly by parents identifying whether their child is using drugs.

Other forums planned for later in the year will cover Immigration and Personal Security

Becoming a Police Officer: Structured Oral Interview

The structured oral interview consists of a series of questions that assess the skills and abilities  necessary to perform as a law enforcement officer with the Dalton Police Department.  These questions can range from hypothetical scenarios to specific questions about how you tend to deal with situations.  The answers given by the applicant are rated by a panel of assessors.  The assessors are all members of the Dalton Police Department.

The applicant is provided with a copy of each question that is to be asked and are allowed to make notes and organize their thoughts prior to a response.  There is a maximum time limit allowed for each question whereby the applicant is given 5 minutes to prepare and answer the question once it is read.

The oral assessment is designed to assess the most critical job-related skills and abilities.  Some of the areas that may be assessed in the oral assessment include the following:

• interpersonal skills
• teamwork
• judgment
• problem-solving
• community orientation
• stress tolerance; and
• flexibility

While you may be asked to respond to hypothetical scenarios, knowledge of department procedures, laws or any specific job knowledge is not required.

You can get more information about the structured oral interview from our Candidate Structured Oral Interview (SOI) Orientation and Preparation Guide.

Gang Forum: Dalton City Hall 6:00 p.m.

The Dalton Police Department will be hosting a Gang forum this evening, Tuesday February 6th, at Dalton's City Hall, 300 W. Waugh Street.  The forum will start at 6:00 p.m. with a short presentation from members of the Safe Streets Task Force followed by a question & answer session from the public. 

Crime prevention officers and members of the police department's Criminal Investigation Division will also be present.

Residents are encouraged to attend to learn more about gangs and steps to eliminate gang activity in their neighborhoods.

Police Warn Stores about Check Fraud

Police are warning Dalton Stores about two recent check fraud incidents.  On January 27th, approximately 10 Hispanic males entered a local store; Casa del sol located on 707 East Morris Street in Dalton, and cashed 13 fraudulent checks totaling in excess of $6000.

The day before on January 26th, approximately 15 Hispanic males went into the La Michoacana on 608 MLK Blvd. in Dalton, and cashed 48 fraudulent checks totaling approximately $22,000.  Some of the individuals would cash their checks, walk to the back of the store, get back in line and cash another check.  Some of the offenders did this as much as five times changing their appearance each time they approached the cashier.

All the fraudulent checks appeared to be payroll checks from the company, Trowel & Hammer Trades Contractors, Inc. located in Chattanooga, Tennessee.  All the business information on the checks is correct but the checks were not issued by the company.

Police are asking for any other businesses that received checks from this company to contact them as they are likely victims of these suspects.  Business owners are asked to contact Detective John Helton at (706) 278-9085 extension 143.

Police are also reminding businesses of safeguards to protect them from being victims.  Businesses should be suspicious of:

• No ID
• Name on check and ID do not match
• Two party checks
• Checks that appear to be altered, "washed" (faded), written over, crossed out, etc.
• Picture on ID does not match person cashing check

Steps the store can do to further prevent fraud:

• Recorded video Surveillance
• Thumb print on check
• Ledger system
• Require government issued ID
• Verify picture on ID matches person cashing check

Police Department's 2007 Strategic Plan Complete

Strategic Plan

The Dalton Police has updated its strategic plan to cover the years 2007-2009. The strategic plan is designed to achieve six specific objectives, and sets several targets. In order to increase the participation and buy-in, all department employees, as well as local citizens, participate in determining the specific goals and objectives. Next, specific targets and time lines are applied. At the end of the process, all strategies are measured against the department's mission before being added to the updated plan.

The six objectives are:

• Reduce the incidents of crime in Dalton.
• To provide a safe, efficient, and free flow of traffic on the roadways in Dalton, creating a safer driving environment.
• Enhance the employees' ability to achieve their mission through training, education, and leadership.
• Increase quality of service and customer satisfaction by providing incentives and benefits to employees.
• Maintain a comprehensive equipment replacement program.
• Increase diversity of agency personnel.

The plan is updated every three years, and progress is monitored continuously. Although the plan is the "road map" for employees to follow, some strategies may be periodically adjusted to meet changing conditions.

In addition to studying crime data, the 2007 Strategic Plan was formulated using both the citizen survey as well as a department wide internal survey.  The document articulates the goals that the agency plans to accomplish over the next several years.

Goals and Accomplishments

In addition to the strategic plan, the police department keeps a running account of past year accomplishments, and coming year goals. These are broken down by departmental division. The Accomplishments for 2006 and the Goals and Objectives for 2007 represent the works of all the department's employees, sworn officers and civilians.